[URBAN NOTE] "Internal Metrolinx ‎reports pointed to lower Union-Pearson train fares"

[rfmcdonald]

The Globe and Mail's Oliver Moore writes about new memos revealing an astonishing amount of internal disarray at Metrolinx regarding Union-Pearson Express pricing.

Metrolinx knew before launching Toronto’s train to the airport last summer that prices in the $10 to $15 range were popular and would attract more riders, according to internal data, but pressure to recoup costs helped push the prices much higher.

The decision to set the cash fare for the Union Pearson Express at $27.50 has turned into a serious black eye for both the regional transit agency and the provincial government, which is keen to get the train breaking even quickly.

The gambit backfired. In spite of discounts, relatively few people were willing to pay the higher ticket price. The train was bleeding money. With the number of passengers falling short of expectations, officials eventually accepted that the fare structure would not achieve what they wanted.

Under increasing pressure from Queen’s Park, Metrolinx is cutting fares by more than half, effective March 9. The new price of $12 – or $9 with a Presto fare card, and less for riding only part of the distance – brings the cost into line with figures identified in the research done before the train launched. The new fares also jibe with the results of focus groups the agency did in January.

With the new ticket prices, though, the goal of having a train that breaks even – a key government requirement that contributed to the high initial fares – has become mathematically almost impossible unless costs can be reined in somehow.